'Like a slap in the face': Estonia slams level of Russian delegation for peace talks
Photo: Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna (Getty Images)
Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna has spoken out sharply about Russia sending a low-level delegation to talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, reports The Guardian.
Tsahkna believes that Vladimir Putin sending a low-level delegation to Türkiye seems "like a slap in the face.”
According to available information, Russia will send:
- Vladimir Medinsky, Putin's aide (head of the delegation);
- Mikhail Galuzin, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia;
- Igor Kostyukov, Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces;
- Alexander Fomin - Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia.
Ukraine-Russia talks in Istanbul
On the night of May 10-11, Putin rejected the initiative for a ceasefire but declared Russia's readiness to resume talks with Ukraine on May 15 in Istanbul. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for his part, confirmed Kyiv's openness to negotiations but stressed that such a meeting was possible only after a ceasefire at the front.
Later, Türkiye expressed its willingness to mediate in future talks.
Trump's special envoy, Keith Kellogg, said that the prospect of negotiations would arise only after the ceasefire was implemented.
